1. Field of the Invention:
This invention relates to a movable or portable bathtub unit with a bubble-jet mechanism for emitting a jet of air bubbles and/or hot water into a hot bath.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Nowadays, a style of bathing while applying a jet of air bubbles and/or hot water to the body of a person soaking in a hot bath has become to popular for bringing about the massaging effect to improve the circulation of the blood. There are known two types of so-called bubble-jet bath systems for practicing the aforesaid bathing style, i.e., one of the conventional bubble-jet bath systems is a portable jet bath unit capable of being detachably attached to an existing stationary bathtub, and the other type is a bath system comprising a stationary bathtub and a bubble-jet producing device fixedly integrated to the bathtub.
Although the former portable bath system is made compact for carrying convenience, it cannot produce an intense jet of air bubbles or hot water having a jet pressure sufficient to effectively massage a person in the bath.
The latter stationary bathtub system is advantageous in producing a jet of air bubbles or water having sufficient jet pressure, but it is restricted in its installation in a bathroom. That is, the installation of the system in the bathroom inevitably calls for massive operations of altering a bathroom construction and bringing the bathtub integrated with the bubble-jet producing device into the bathroom, which are much harder and frequently either impossible or very difficult.
To be more specific, in order to install the stationary bathtub system in a bathroom, a sufficient space for accommodating driving means including an electric motor and a jet pump must be secured, and piping for supplying a jet of air bubbles and/or hot water must be adequately arranged. Besides, maintainance and repair of a bubble-jet producing device mounted on the conventional stationary bathtub system is very difficult of maintenance and repair.
Furthermore, there has been a need for a movable bathtub unit having a function of emitting a jet of air bubbles and/or hot water, which can be conveniently used even outdoors for enjoying open-air recreation. However, there has not existed a portable bubble-jet bath unit having good durability and ability to produce a powerful jet of air bubbles or hot water.
Although the conventional portable bathtub unit has only a function of emitting a jet of air bubbles or hot water, there has not been found a bathtub unit of this type having pleasant ornamental subsidiaries such as apparatus for illuminating the hot water in the bath and pouring various bath liquids or an aromatic into a bathtub. In particular, incorporation of a lighting apparatus into the bathtub has been only with proposed hesitation in view of the danger of an electricity leak and electric shock.